ENEMY: 8-15 Zekes and Tonys.

RESULTS:

ENEMY LOSSES:

.....1st. Lt. J. P. Morris, approaching to land from E to W opened his flaps 30°. Then just prior to landing he opened them 50°. Only one flap responded, responded, the other broke completely, throwing him into a violent left turn from which he could not recover and the plane fell into the water S of the Munda Airfield. Oil showered into to the cockpit as the flaps failed. Pilot rescued immediately, suffered only from abrasions to one arm. Operational loss.

.....1st. Lt. J. Craig III did not return from flight, not known whether he was engaged by enemy planes.

.....1st. Lt., J. Williams III did not return from flight, not known whether he was engaged by enemy planes.

NARRITIVE ACCOUNT:
..... Fifteen F4Us (VMF-222) from Munda, together with I6 F6F (VF-33) which had landed to refuel, just prior to taking off for the Kahili mission, took off at 0812 to rendezvous at Visu Visu at 0850 at 18,000 feet. VMF-222 and VF-33 planes, as ordered, remained behind but within visual distance of the attacking force of 30 (estimated) heavy bombers which had their own VF cover. Our VF sweep approached Kahili Harbor, remaining out of range of Ballale, to pick off aircraft which might take off from Kahili during or following the pursuit of our bombers. Our fighters remained on station at about 27,000 feet.

.....VF-33 planes saw 8 to 15 enemy fighters, of which several were reported as white nosed Tonys - the rest Zekes. Cantrell's flight was jumped by 7 Zekes and 1 Tony (white nosed) at 27,000 feet. Cantrell fired on several and turned his guns on one believed to be a Zeke which made a head-on approach. The enemy plane fired one burst, nosed down and was seen to go down and splash in he water by Green of the same flight. Green attacked by the same flight, got a burst in one which did a wing over and went straight down. From his altitude, he could not follow its flight, however, and does not claim it as destroyed. After the engagement, Green reports that there were only five of the original force of 8 attacking planes in the air. At least 3 others in VF-33 got in bursts but without observed results.

.....Of VMF-222 planes, 3 planes returned early. Turner, with motor trouble, Hobbs to escort him. Neither reached the target. Yeager returned with oxygen trouble soon after the take-off.

.....Major Volcansek and Reid, of his flight, made contact with a flight of Japs (believed to be the same flight contacted by VF-33 planes). Volcansek got one burst into a Zeke with no observed results. Reid saw 4 Zeros at 1,000 feet climbing fast, circled and saw five more just under him. Reid put a burst into the same plane which Volcansek had attacked, saw it smoke and head down, He then joined with Volcansek. Six Zeros, with a slight altitude advantage were closing in on the two planes which were low on gas, both of them streaked for home. Major Volcansek's plane was out of gas immediately after taxing off the runway, Craig's plane, of Volcansek's flight was observed to be smoking by both Reid and Volcansek. Craig peeled off and was joined by Williams of the same flight. Neither Craig nor Williams were actually observed in combat with enemy planes.

.....Major Sapp, returning from mission saw a splash or circular wave at about 1015, which he believed to have been at 156+ 55'- 7 -30'. Norton, VF-33, returning saw at about the same time, a white object, possibly a parachute in the water at 156 degrees, 47 minutes- 7 degrees, 30 minutes. These locations are in the same area and may account for one or both the missing planes.

.....No other contacts were made by VMF-222 planes.

.....Planes first on station were reported that several fires were started at the NW end of the strip, one at the SE end, as a result of the bombing. Later arrivals did not observe any fires from the strip and reported one string of bombs just off shore in the harbor. Majority report of the shipping in the harbor, locate four ships close to shore and a short distance up the coast from the strip, and two ships well back in Tonolei Harbor. Planes were too high to identify as to type or condition.

.....A.A. was reported as moderate from both Kahili and Ballale and well below the bombers.

.....Returning planes saw one to five Zeros, very low over the water, following the attack, but being low on gas, made no attempt to attack them.

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